CVE-2018-16010 in Acrobat Reader
Summary
by MITRE
Adobe Acrobat and Reader versions 2019.008.20081 and earlier, 2019.008.20080 and earlier, 2019.008.20081 and earlier, 2017.011.30106 and earlier version, 2017.011.30105 and earlier version, 2015.006.30457 and earlier, and 2015.006.30456 and earlier have an out-of-bounds read vulnerability. Successful exploitation could lead to information disclosure.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/04/2024
This vulnerability exists in multiple versions of Adobe Acrobat and Reader software, specifically affecting versions up to and including 2019.008.20081, 2017.011.30106, 2015.006.30457, and their respective earlier releases. The core issue manifests as an out-of-bounds read condition that occurs when the software processes certain malformed input data within PDF documents. This type of vulnerability falls under the CWE-125 category of Out-of-bounds Read, which represents a fundamental memory safety issue where the application attempts to access memory locations beyond the allocated buffer boundaries. The vulnerability is particularly concerning because it can be triggered through the normal operation of opening maliciously crafted PDF files, making it a prime candidate for exploitation in phishing campaigns or targeted attacks.
The technical flaw stems from insufficient input validation and bounds checking within the PDF parsing components of Adobe's software suite. When processing PDF files containing specially crafted data structures, the application fails to properly validate array indices or buffer limits before accessing memory locations. This allows an attacker to manipulate the application's memory access patterns and potentially read data from adjacent memory regions that contain sensitive information such as stack contents, heap data, or other memory segments that may contain credentials, encryption keys, or other confidential data. The out-of-bounds read occurs during the parsing of PDF objects, particularly when handling malformed arrays or dictionary entries that exceed expected size constraints. This vulnerability is classified under the ATT&CK technique T1203 - Exploitation for Client Execution, as it leverages the application's legitimate PDF processing capabilities to achieve unauthorized memory access.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple information disclosure, as it can serve as a stepping stone for more sophisticated attacks. An attacker who successfully exploits this vulnerability could potentially extract sensitive information from the application's memory space, including but not limited to user credentials, system configuration details, or cryptographic keys that might be stored in memory during PDF processing operations. The vulnerability's trigger mechanism makes it particularly dangerous in targeted attack scenarios where adversaries can craft malicious PDF documents designed to exploit this specific memory access flaw. The affected versions span multiple release cycles, indicating that this was a persistent issue that required multiple patches across different software versions. Organizations using these vulnerable versions face significant risk exposure, especially in environments where PDF documents are frequently opened from untrusted sources, making this vulnerability a critical concern for enterprise security teams.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability should focus on immediate software updates and patches provided by Adobe, as well as network-level protections to prevent the delivery of malicious PDF files. Organizations should implement comprehensive patch management processes to ensure all instances of affected Adobe software are updated promptly. Additionally, security controls such as PDF content filtering, sandboxing mechanisms, and network segmentation can help reduce the attack surface. The vulnerability highlights the importance of robust input validation and memory safety practices in software development, particularly for applications that process untrusted data formats like PDF documents. Security teams should also consider implementing monitoring for suspicious PDF file access patterns and establish incident response procedures specifically for handling potential exploitation attempts targeting this class of vulnerability.